So far here are some pictures...

Auckland Skyline

Me in front of a monument to their first prime minister in a city park

Big bird? Yes, the biggest, EVER.  Unfortunately,

 about 500 years extinct.  He stands 12 fee tall.

Chris' flat-mate Ron.  A great tour guide!

This is a traditional Mauri Kari house (meeting house)

I kid you not, I found this in the woods 

on a trail in the middle of no where.

My friend Chris, reaching for some trail mix

This is the "hole in the rock" out boat actually went through

This is a somewhat famous house because it has

 11 floors under a single continuous roof.

The 90 mile beach on the North West coast of NZ

You can actually drive your car here for 90 miles

Auckland skyline from their 1200 foot Sky Tower

A yellow-green sulfur lake at the thermal wonderland

I'm standing on the boardwalk in the middle of a 

30 acre sulfur lake.   Skinky!

This is another area near Rotorua that has steam and hot

 water vents poking through the ground everywhere.  

There are even some in peoples backyards

This is a large geyser at Rotorua.  15 meters high

Lake Rotorua.  A volcanic remnant.

The green is SO green here.  It's the middle of winter in this photo. 

 About 55 degrees out, but sunny.

The view from Chris' apartment

Inside my friend Chris' apartment.

  Thanks to him for letting me stay here!

The two mounds in the background are old volcanoes.

  This is the view from a city park.  SO GREEN

NZ has water falls

Lot's of falls

This is the signed Treaty of Waitangi which gave birth to the 

co-existent nation of New Zealand by its 

Mauri and English settlers

Yup.  I learned to drive on the wrong side.

There are some stunning rock formations

This picture doesn't do it justice, but this cave is actually illuminated

 by nothing other than little glow worms.  It's an eerie blue light

Bays, Islands and beaches.

They like to sail a lot.  No wonder!

This is the town we stayed in one night. 

 Earliest European settlement in NZ.  Russell

A pool of various show sized trout at a wonderful nature reserve.

  I also saw a live KIWI (bird) but couldn't photograph her.

This chart shows the relative size of eruptions. 

 St. Helens in 1980 is the little yellow one.  

Pinitubo is the second largest orange one, 

and the largest is what is currently Lake Taupo NZ.

  One of the largest ever.  about 151 ad\

This is one of many volcanic vents i saw.

Tom, one of the flat mates great friends